by Nick Caramico

In a fall television season packed with legal and medical dramas, one new show really stood out to me: Boardwalk Empire. Award winning producer Terence Winter, of The Sopranos, returns with Martin Scorsese and Mark Wahlberg to make up the Executive Producer staff. Scorsese himself directs the first episode, and worked closely with the other directors to continue the same “feel” throughout the series.

The first episode of Boardwalk Empire begins the day before American alcohol Prohibition begins in the 1920′s. Enoch “Nucky” Thompson, played by Steve Buscemi, is the Treasurer of Atlantic City, who is running the city’s underground bootlegging. Thompson has all the major authorities paying him off, from the mayor down to the fire chief, and even his brother, the police sheriff. Based on a real political figure himself, interacts with real historical gangsters and politicians, including Al Capone and Lucky Luciano. It is interesting to see things like cocaine being used as medicine and the proper language used.

Taking place in the 20′s, every set, costume, and music has been carefully crafted to truly make this series feel old fashioned. Period-accurate cars and telephones add to the unique look. A 1920′s style boardwalk was built in Brooklyn and used as the main set.

Prohibition doesn’t stop Thompson and his crew from profiting off the sale of alcohol. In the first few episodes, Thompson begins accumulating and setting up underground distilleries and gambling rings. Even though the sale and distribution of alcohol is illegal, there is hardly a bar, club, or casino in Atlantic City that does not serve alcohol. Thompson gets in trouble with Chicago gangsters early on when a convoy carrying alcohol was intercepted by rogue followers of Thompson. Thompson is not unlike Tony Soprano, in that he is constantly battling personal issues and “professional” issues. Thompson has the added pressures of having to appeal to the public and gaining supporters for an upcoming election. He needs to look clean to most people, but then rules the underground with violence and fear. The show bounces back and forth between these two sides of Thompson. Federal Agencies are not blind to Thompson’s ways and are quick to investigate his gang and the Chicago convoy debacle.

Buscemi grasps the role of Thompson well and delivers witty one liners to his associates, employees, and women. While the show takes a generally dark and serious tone, the interplay between Buscemi and his butler create some of the funniest and interesting interactions of the show. The way the characters interact also makes this show stand out, and it feels genuine. Even the secondary characters add a lot to this story. Thompson’s nephew who has just come home from the War is trying to rebuild his life and create a new life for his family, but gets caught up in the gangster lifestyle. The interactions between these two make for the most interesting scenes in the first few episodes.

Three episodes have currently aired, and it is not to late to catch up on this new show. HBO has already renewed the series for a second season after 7 million viewers for the series premiere. There are a lot of new an unique series to choose from this fall, but Boardwalk Empire stands out as being something truly different and out of the norm. Boardwalk Empire airs Sunday nights on HBO.